JEDDAH, 21 August 2003 — Saudi Arabia has accepted a request by a delegation of Iraq’s US-appointed interim Governing Council to visit the Kingdom, the Saudi Press Agency reported yesterday.
“In line with the Arab position, Saudi Arabia has accepted a request by members of the Iraqi Governing Council to visit the Kingdom,” the SPA quoted an official spokesman for the Foreign Ministry as saying.
Riyadh said it took the decision on the basis of a UN Security Council resolution passed Thursday that welcomed the establishment of the Governing Council in Iraq.
The council represents a broad section of the country and is “an important step toward helping the Iraqi people form a government that will be recognized by the international community,” the Saudi spokesman said.
The delegation, headed by current Council President Ibrahim Jafari, has already visited the United Arab Emirates, Oman and Bahrain, all members of the Gulf Cooperation Council.
Also yesterday, the Kingdom condemned the bombing that devastated the UN headquarters in Baghdad and killed at least 17 and wounded more than 100.
“The government of Saudi Arabia strongly condemns the bomb blast at the UN headquarters in Iraq on Tuesday. Saudi Arabia deplores such acts,” the SPA quoted a government spokesman as saying.
